By Richard Piacentini, executive director of Phipps Conservatory and Botanical
Gardens, Pittsburgh, PA; past-president of the American Public Gardens Association;
and member of the board of directors of the World Water Center.

Public gardens are in a unique position to help people make lasting changes
in the way they garden and interact with the environmental. At Phipps
Conservatory and Botanical Gardens we have been making significant changes
to our gardening and other operational practices over the last few years and
recognized that we could use this as an opportunity to help our members and the
visiting public reduce their environmental footprint.

Gardening is the number one pastime in America. Unfortunately, while it adds
beauty to our home and business landscapes, gardening is not always carried out
in an environmentally friendly matter.

Pesticide and fertilizers contaminate our groundwater and waterways at an
unprecedented rate. BeyondPesticides.org estimates that 78 million households
in the U.S. use home and garden pesticides. Of 30 commonly used lawn
pesticides, 17 are detected in groundwater, and 23 have the potential to leach.
Runoff from synthetic chemical fertilizer application pollutes rivers, streams and
lakes and causes algae blooms, depleted oxygen, and damage to aquatic life.

Much water is also wasted through improper watering techniques and by our
tendency to grow plants not adapted to our climate. In this case we are talking
about plants that require more water then naturally occurs through rainfall.

At Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens we decided to make efficient use
of water a high priority as part of an institutional commitment to sustainability.
Interestingly enough, economics was not a consideration. When Phipps, a city
owned and operated facility, was turned over to a non-profit to run in 1993, the
lease called for the city to provide free water to the conservatory.

Our move towards sustainability took off when we got involved in the “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design” (LEED®) certification process
and opened the first LEED certified building in a public garden with our new
Welcome Center in 2005. One major component of LEED is related to efficient management of water. Use less,
discharge less to sanitary systems,
and manage storm water runoff
on site.

To minimize water use in the
building we installed waterless
urinals, automatic faucets with
aerators, and low flow toilets.
A green roof over most of the
building also helped to capture
rainwater. Drip irrigation, a
system that is much more
efficient than sprinklers, was
installed in the planting beds surrounding the front entrance.

We then decided to go beyond the LEED requirements and began to make a
whole series of changes, particularly in our outdoor water management activities.
We removed the entire irrigation system from our front lawn and replanted
the lawn with drought resistant endophyte enhanced grass varieties. We also
adopted organic lawn care for the entire lawn to eliminate pesticide and fertilizer
runoff to groundwater and waterways. We installed a series of six additional
demonstration garden beds to feature sustainable plant recommendations. This
includes native and non-native, non-invasive exotic plants that are adapted to our
climate and do not need additional watering throughout the year. None of these
beds have an irrigation system, nor do they need it.

To meet overflow parking needs, we installed a recycled plastic grid system in the
lawn that allows us to park 150 cars on busy days with no negative impact on the
lawn. In the meantime, the lawn is capturing rainwater, sequestering carbon, and
producing oxygen. Not only does it look better then the most likely alternative, an
asphalt parking lot, but it eliminates the problems a typical parking lot adds, like
additional heat island effect and “What do you do with all the storm runoff?”

Within the Conservatory we eliminated bottled water from all of our meetings
and rental events and soon after banned it from sale in our café. All noncirculating
fountains were replaced with fountains using recirculating
pumps. Minimizing pesticide use through an extensive IPM (integrated pest
management) program meant we were not discharging water contaminated with
pesticide residues.

In November 2006, we learned about the Living Building Challenge put out by
the Cascadia Chapter of the US Green Building Council. A “Living Building” is a
building that exceeds LEED Platinum, the highest level of green building to date,
and is zero net energy and zero net water. We decided to accept the challenge and
began to develop plans for treating our sanitary and storm water and make our
own drinking water.

For sanitary we explored the use of a living machine and constructed wetlands.
We settled on the constructed wetland and determined that not only could we
treat the sanitary water from the new building, but our entire campus as well. To

Phipps Site Plan

capture and treat storm water runoff we selected a number of different strategies
including bioretention areas (or rain gardens), green roof, porous pavement,
subsurface flow treatment areas and lagoon. The lagoon would also act as a
storage tank to provide irrigation water during the summer months.

In 2006, when we built our new 36,000 square foot production greenhouses
and our new 12,000 square foot Tropical Forest Conservatory -- the most energy
efficient conservatory in the world -- we set up the plumbing so that we could
eventually capture all the rain water from the glass roofs for future use. We
determined that this water was the best candidate for making potable water. We would collect it, filter it, and then sanitize it using a UV light system. However,
current codes and regulations regarding drinking water may prevent us from
completing this step.

All of these systems will be accessible and interpreted for the public and school
groups. We also developed training programs for landscapers and home
gardeners on how to manage their gardens in a more sustainable manner in a
comprehensive program we call Project Green Heart.

We have seen a great surge in interest in public gardens across the country
to be more sustainable and to use this as an opportunity to engage the public
in understanding and adopting more sustainable lifestyles. Collectively, our
impact can be great. Over 50 million people visit our public gardens each year
for inspiration and learning. Exposing them to better water management in the
garden can have a far reaching impact in our environment.

It has been said many times that water is the next oil. Careful use of water and
respect for our ground water and waterways through our gardening practices will
help ensure that this precious resource is available for future generations.

Other Items of Note

Water Quality of Potential Concern in US Private Wells

US Geological Survey, 27 March 2009

About 43 million people -- or 15 percent of the Nation’s population - use drinking
water from private wells, which are not regulated by the Federal Safe Drinking
Water Act.

More than 20 percent of private domestic wells sampled nationwide contain at
least one contaminant at levels of potential health concern, according to a study
by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

USGS scientists sampled about 2,100 private wells in 48 states and found that
the contaminants most frequently measured at concentrations of potential
health concern were inorganic contaminants, including radon and arsenic. These
contaminants are mostly derived from the natural geologic materials that make up the aquifers from which well water is drawn. Complete findings are
available online.

Nitrate was the most common inorganic contaminant derived from man-made
sources such as from fertilizer applications and septictanks - that was found at
concentrations greater than the Federal drinking-water standard for public-water
supplies (10 parts per million). Nitrate was greater than the standard in about 4
percent of sampled wells.

The study shows that the occurrence of selected contaminants varies across
the country, often following distinct geographic patterns related to geology,
geochemical conditions, and land use. For example, elevated concentrations of
nitrate were largely associated with intensively farmed land, such as in parts of
the Midwest Corn Belt and the Central Valley of California. Radon was found at
relatively high concentrations in crystalline-rock aquifers in the Northeast, in the
central and southern Appalachians, and in central Colorado.

“The results of this study are important because they show that a large number of
people may be unknowingly affected,” said Matt Larsen, USGS Associate Director
for Water. “Greater attention to the quality of drinking water from private wells
and continued public education are important steps toward the goal of protecting
public health.”

University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Water Issues Education Series
No. 5, March 13, 2009

Water scarcity is one of the most complex and pressing issues facing the arid
western US. Compared with other economic sectors, irrigated agriculture remains
the largest user of freshwater accounting for approximately between 70 and 95
percent of total water withdrawals.

Demand for water is growing and increasingly represents urban interest whose
priorities for water use are divided among recreation, protection of wildlife and
habitat, and human consumption.

Farmers are named as defendants in a number of lawsuits in the west, including
Nevada, where the competition for water is fierce and occasionally volatile.

Water shortages and quality issues are likely to worsen over time. Water crisis
management is not the answer, nor is the use of collaborative processes with no
definable endpoint. The U.S. Department of Interior in their report titled, Water
2025: Preventing Crises and Conflict in the West (1998) outline several options
for addressing anticipated water conflict.

These include more efficient water uses, cut back and/or eliminate existing water
uses, develop alternative water resources (cloud seeding and desalinization) and
transfer water between existing and new uses through market-based mechanisms
such as water banking.

The development of water markets increasingly is proposed to satisfy increased
water demand and resolve water disputes. In theory, the market place can
direct the flow of water from lowest to highest value. Benefits to society from
marketbased water transfers include the provision of water for recreation and
urban consumption plus increased in-stream flow to protect wildlife habitat and
ecosystem health.

In an effort to consume less water and consequently provide water in exchange
for revenue, farmers may be more likely to invest in more efficient irrigation
technology or grow less water intensive crops. In over-allocated systems, marketbased
transfers could result in additional water supplies to help expand existing
farm operations, “make whole” junior appropriators or supply other competitive
nonagricultural uses.

IBM revealed the findings from its Global Innovation Outlook (GIO) on Water
-- a series of brainstorming sessions around the world, that brought together
hundreds of the world’s leading water management experts -- scientists,
academics, businesses and governments -- to share knowledge and discuss
strategies for improving the efficiency of the world’s water systems. The sessions revealed that society and business are facing some complex challenges when it
comes to understanding and managing water resources on this planet. A lack
of viable and actionable data was identified as a key inhibitor to effective water management.

Similarly, a new IBM study underscored a growing gap within businesses and
organizations around acknowledging water issues and managing increasingly
complex water processes. A majority of companies ranked water management as
a top priority, but lacked necessary processes and systems for administration and
control. For example, 77 percent of those surveyed felt that water management
was extremely critical to their businesses, but 51 percent lacked formal guidelines
for implementation. In addition, 63 percent of executives lacked access to
integrated water management systems and decision support systems.

“Regardless of industry or geography, smarter water management is an issue
faced by every business and government on the planet,” said Sharon Nunes, Vice
President for Big Green Innovations at IBM. “Without sufficient insight into nearand
long-term factors affecting your water supply and usage -- complex issues
such as access, quality, cost and re-use -- you increasingly run the risk of failure.”

Brian Richterb, Director of The Nature Conservancy’s Global Freshwater
Team commented, “Together with IBM, The Nature Conservancy is developing
computer tools that will enable companies to gain a better understanding of
the environmental and social consequences of their water use. By fostering
sustainable water management practices, companies and municipalities will be
able to make better decisions to the benefit of both local communities and nature.”

“Governments, industry and society need to work together to start to address
these systems -- water, energy and agriculture -- in a more strategic and
integrated way. We need to use a broader perspective,” added Joppe Cramwinckel,
Sustainable Development Lead at Royal Dutch Shell.